Selected quad for the lemma: woman_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
woman_n	bruise_v	heel_n	serpent_n	2,564	5	9.8176	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65466	A sermon concerning reformation of manners preach'd at St. Jame's Church, Westminster, Feb. 13, and afterwards at St. Brides, to one of the religious societies / by Samuel Wesley ...	Wesley, Samuel, 1662-1735.	1698 (1698)	Wing W1377; ESTC R14620	17,055	50

Confusion but still Satan will not fight against Satan and all his Subjects unite themselves against the Lord and against his Christ to break their bonds in sunder and cast away their cords from them Now in opposition to those infernal Legions did our blessed Lord institute his Church being a regulated Society of Men by their very Nature and Constitution most firmly united together and obliged to love one another by virtue of which mystical and indissolvable Union a● well with Christ their Head as with al● their Fellow-Members sealed and confirmed in the Holy Sacraments they obtain that Strength and Stability that the Gates of Hell shall never prevail against them And indeed were all the outward Members of the visible Church but real Members likewise of that which is internal spiritual and invisible in short did all who bear the name of Christ walk worthy of their Holy Profession there would be no need of Discipline nor of any such subordinate Union as I am now recommending in any Christian Common-wealth any more than there would be need of Laws and Sanctions annexed unto them in the Civil Government did all Men regulate themselves by the true Law of Nature and Principles of right Reason but since none can be so sanguine as to expect such a happy state of things it lies upon Good Men to do what they can and to use all those prudent Methods which are in their power to make the World a little better to unite their Hands and their Hearts in some measure at least to repress notorious Vice and punish Gods Dishonour It 's almost incredible to say what happy Effects we shoud soon see from such a close and firm Conjunction of all good Men in the prosecution of these desirable Ends. Very considerable things have by Gods Blessing been already done by some few who have devoted themselves to the Service of God and their Country on this occasion who have born the Burden and Heat of the day and entred themselves into Societies for the Reformation of Manners both in this and our neighbouring Nation of Ireland And may God increase their Number as he will certainly reward their Labour There 's a great Door opend and no other can be expected but that they shou'd still meet with many Adversaries There 's yet but too much Employment for more Hands and 't wou'd be the Honour as well as the Interest of all good Men to joyn with them in this Undertaking nay of the greatest Prince on Earth to own his Cause from whom he receives his Crown that by mature and united Councils mutual assistance more earnest application and greater numbers they might successfully prosecute what is so well began and what can scarcely be accomplished by any other methods III. I come now in the third place to the manner how we are to set about this great Duty It ought certainly to be managed with the greatest Zeal and the greatest Prudence 1. With Zeal For since 't is good to be Zealously affected in every Good matter much more is it so in this which has so immediate an Influence on so many great and momentous Ends. Zeal in moral Affairs seems to have much the same surprising Effects which Motion has in Physical and Mechanical it produces what seem'd at first impossible it gives a new Mould and Turn to every Action it sets on work all the secret Springs and Powers of the Mind and makes them act with such a Force and Vigour as is almost irresistible God and Man hate a lukewarm Temper which has often created greater Obstructions to good Designs than the most open Opposition against them Who will rise up with me who will stand up for me against the workers of Iniquity Who has Courage and Constancy and Bravery equal to so glorious an Underatking As that Zeal is Madness which pushes a Man on to illegal and indefensible Actions whatever be the motive of his engaging in them so that Wisdom is Folly which hinders a Man from doing his Duty and vindicating Gods Honour But still we must take care that our Zeal be temper'd with Prudence and if ever we are to be wise as Serpents we are certainly to be so in these Matters wherein we are sure to have the old Serpent himself our sworn and inveterate Enemy He may bruise the Heel of the Seed of the Woman of the Members as well as of Christ their Head by Backbiting and Reproaches and by all the Calumnies that Hell can invent or its Emissaries utter What need then have all those good Men who engage in this honourable and weighty Affair of stemming the Tide of Vice amongst us what need have they to be always upon their Guard and to take care of their Steps since there are so many who watch for their Halting To act by the most prudent and advisable Methods to be zealous without being passionate which perhaps is one of the most difficult things in the World To give no just Offence to any to prepare themselves against the doubtful Combat to expect to be hated and slander'd by bad Men as was their Master before them and for the same Reason too because they testifie against them that their deeds are evil to be sober and vigilant to avoid what is scandalous as well as what is sinful and so on the contrary By no means to forget themselves their own Persons or their own Families while they are so busie in reforming others and to suffer no Beam or so much as a Mote in their own Eye while they are endeavouring to clear their Brothers Eye which could not fail of having an happy influence on their own Minds as their instructive Examples would on those of others and be one of those natural and inseparable Rewards which even in this Life attend Virtue and Goodness and which in some sort may seem to antedate an happy Eternity I proceed to draw some practical Inferences from what has been said Use 1. And the first may be to Reprove those who are so far from opposing Vice and Wickedness that they rather encourage it and support as it well as discourage others who are engag'd against it so far from rising up against Evil-doers that they rise up together with them and 't is to be fear'd that too many will come under this Reproof who think themselves wholly innocent such are those who any ways countenance wicked Men in their lewd Practices and infamous Behaviours who chuse the Company of ill Men and therefore seem to stand in the way of Sinners and are in great danger of sitting in the seat of the scorner tho they cannot be ignorant who has said That he who walks with wise men shall be wise but a companion of fools shall be destroy'd not that all Correspondence with Ill Men is forbidden as to the necessary Offices of Civil or Private Life for then as the Apostle says must we go out of the World but I speak of a voluntary Intimacy a